Young people and immigrants living in London especially look at the monarchy with great indifference, believing that the country has other fish to fry.
Photo Hugo Duchaine
The teenager Jude Hewitt is not affected by the death of the queen, it is rather his grandparents who are bereaved.
“I don’t understand what they do or what they are for […] My grandparents are sad, but I’m not, ”says 17-year-old Jude Hewitt, who was having fun on a skateboard yesterday near Tower Hamlets.
Moreover, a walk in this district, one of the most disadvantaged in central London, quickly shows that many Britons do not have time to think about the death of Queen Elizabeth II.
Here, immigrants are busy putting up stalls of a few pounds of clothing along Petticoat Lane and no one has five minutes to talk about the monarchy. And passers-by prefer to be silent rather than speak ill of it.
“For some it’s important, but for others, life goes on […] People here have a lot of respect for the royal family and you have to accept that,” said 37-year-old Nuj Ahmed. This seller cares more about inflation.
“It’s frustrating, everything is going up except wages,” he says.
The energy bill would jump by 80%
In the UK, inflation is even higher than in Canada. Britons have been warned that as early as October their energy bills could soar by 80% and food prices have also jumped.
The public health system is also going through difficult times, as in Quebec. Huge waiting lists, staff shortages and threats of strikes by workers who want to improve their conditions.
The government has also been rocked by several scandals under ex-Prime Minister Boris Johnson, leading to mass resignations. The new Prime Minister, Liz Truss, had only just been appointed when the Queen died on Thursday.
Beware of excess
Living in London for more than 20 years and originally from Cyprus, Aise Aksay believes Britons will have less patience for the excesses of the rich, royals or not.
She recalls that for many, the monarchy is perceived negatively because of its past association with colonialism and slavery.
Photo Hugo Duchaine
Even if he salutes the 70 years she has devoted to his country, Mohammed Salisu does not have time to go and collect himself for the queen, he must work to earn a living.
“I don’t blame the queen personally for that,” said 47-year-old Mohammed Salisu.
He left Ghana over 20 years ago to live in London.
He sells jewelry and trinkets at Spitafields Market and he cannot take time off to attend royal events.
“A friend asked me if I was still working, but I have no choice, because no one else will put money in my pocket,” he breathes.
The cost of living is made “astronomical” according to him. “I’m scared, believe me, very scared,” breathes Mr. Salisu, adding however that if the population is looking for a Turk’s head during these difficult times, they will attack the government and not the royal family.
“It seems so far from me,” says Tiger Smith, 22, about the monarchy. He sees the new king and his castles as a tourist attraction.
The United Kingdom is struggling
10.1%
- This is the highest inflation of the G7 countries last July.
12.4%
- Inflation is even worse on food prices.
80%
- The jump that Britons should expect on their electricity bill this autumn.
- The British media are talking about the “eat or heat” dilemma that awaits them this winter.
- The authorized price cap will drop from 1,971 pounds ($2,982.71 Canadian) per year per average household to 3,549 pounds ($5,370.70).
29,000
- The number of patients who waited more than 12 hours in the emergency room in July.
356,000
- Those who have waited over a year for surgery.
- The shortage of health care workers, accentuated by Brexit, which led to the departure of several Europeans from the British health network, weighs very heavily.
“Strikes of Wrath”
- On hiatus since the queen’s death, massive strikes have paralyzed the country this summer. In different sectors, workers have taken to the streets to denounce the dazzling rise in the cost of living and wages that are not keeping up.